Thor Vol 1 156
| StoryTitle1 = The Hammer and the Holocaust! | Synopsis1 = Continued from last issue... Thor has confronted Mangog, a demonic creature which intends to bring about Ragnarok in revenge against Odin for his exile. Although the creature has the upper hand against Thor to begin with, Thor manages to grasp for his hammer and use it to deliver powerful blows against the creature. This frees Thor from the monster's grasp, but the creature still continues to be unharmed and easily bats the Thunder God away. Boasting over its victory over Thor, Mangog stops when he hears the jeers of the Warriors Three who call the demon a coward for imprisoning them instead of battling them. Answering to the warriors' taunts, Mangog frees them so that he might give them a taste of his power. Although the Warriors Three bravely face Mangog, they are easily outmatched by the nigh-unstoppable creature. Back in Asgard, Loki is warned by Toag of Mangog's power; however, Loki tells his advisor that he only intends to keep Mangog alive long enough to see Thor destroyed so that he can insure that Odin remains in his Odinsleep forever, and that the combined magic of both he and Karnilla the Norn Queen would be sufficient enough to deal with Mangog. However, Loki's confidence wavers when a number of injured Asgardian warriors return back to the palace to tell Loki of their failure and Mangog's continued approach. Out in the battlefield, Thor revives and uses his power over the storms to summon a tornado that hurls large boulders at Mangog, who is still busy fighting off the Warriors Three. Thor then confronts Mangog up close, unleashing the full fury of his hammer at point blank range. Mangog however continues his advance as Thor increases the power of his hammer, the resulting lightning shot forth from the hammer soon causes the ground to erupt like a volcano, prompting Thor to fall back, hoping that the powerful explosion will distract Mangog enough to allow Thor and the Warriors Three a chance to escape and come up with a new strategy. As the heroes make their escape, on the Bifrost Bridge, Heimdall is greeted by the Rigellian Recorder that has come to Asgard to record the events that are transpiring for its masters. Remembering Thor's encounter with the Recorder, Heimdall allows one of Asgard's warriors to escort the Recorder to the royal palace to carry out its directives. Back on the battle front, Thor and the Warriors Three regroup just as the eruption stabilizes, and they are dismayed to see Mangog rise from the molten lava unmolested. When the creature begins hurling lava at them, Thor furiously unleashes a powerful storm that floods the area and washes Mangog away, giving them time to puzzle over how to stop the creature. At the castle of Karnilla the Norn Queen, Balder continues to fight off reanimated warriors of Karnilla. Karnilla tells the brave warrior that she will call off his attackers if he pronounces his love for her, a request Balder continues to deny. Karnilla tells him that unless he surrenders his heart to her his sentence is death. Back at the royal palace the Recorder finds Sif standing over Odin who is still deep in his Odinsleep. The Recorder deduces that Mangog intends to draw the Odinsword and thereby cause the end of the universe. Unwilling to stand idly by, Sif decides that she will go to the Odinsword and defend it with her life if need be. Finally, back at the scene of the battle, the storm unleashed by Thor has subsided, and as the Warriors Three regroup, Thor ventures forward to see the fate of Mangog, and finds that the creature still has survived and is about to resume its attack on the Thunder God. This story is continued next issue... | Writer1_1 = Stan Lee | Penciler1_1 = Jack Kirby | Inker1_1 = Vince Colletta | Colourist1_1 = | Letterer1_1 = Sam Rosen | Editor1_1 = Stan Lee | Appearing1 = Featured Characters: * ( ) Supporting Characters: * ** ** ** * * * * * * * Antagonists: * * * Locations: * ** * Items: * | Notes = * This is actually the second time a Thor story used the title The Hammer and the Holocaust. The first time was issue #127. * Reprinted in Essential Thor 3, Marvel Treasury Edition 10, Marvel Visionaries TPB (HC): Jack Kirby 2 | Trivia = * Once a year Odin must perform the Odinsleep, in which he must sleep for a day undisturbed to recharge his powers and wisdom. * Ragnarok is the prophesied death of the Asgardian Gods and the world. It can be triggered by drawing the Odinsword from its sheath. | Recommended = | Links = }}